Beyond Words
Language, culture, travel, and stories from the Speak! community
Student Spotlight: SUSANNAH
“These types of human connections that were the highlights of my trip would have been impossible without Stefanie and Speak!“
Spanish Student Spotlight: Jeff – From “Jefe” in 8th Grade to @CaminoJefe on the Trails
“It has been interesting learning about Franco’s home country and the various places he has lived while we worked together.”
Japanese Student Spotlight: Mark
“Learning Japanese feels like expanding my mind—it makes me see the world differently.”
Mark Floryan, Computer Science Professor
Spanish Student Spotlight: Erich
“The regularity that Speak! offers has made the difference. It keeps me accountable and focused.”
Erich Purpur, UVA Library
Spanish Student Spotlight: Brynn
“Studying on my own was easy to do passively. In-person lessons make it impossible to hide behind fear or doubt.”
Spanish Student Spotlight: Full-Time Nurse Kat Mirate
“Our Spanish class is one of the highlights of my week. Nattachya’s joyful energy makes learning fun, even on my hardest days.”
Kat Mirate, Nurse at UVA Health
Spanish Student Spotlight: Sandra Mirkil's Love Affair with Argentina
“Speak! Is a treasure to me. The different Spanish classes and teachers and the German instructors are all excellent.”
Italian Student Spotlight: Anne Pfister
“A big part of the course is based on an overview of Italy and its culture.”
Spanish Student Spotlight: Sharice Welch, UVA’s McIntire School
“The individualized attention from Franco in the one-on-one classes is really great; he is able to tailor the classes according to my needs.”
Sharice Welch, UVA McIntire Admissions
Student Spotlight: Sociology Professor Fiona Greenland Learns Ukrainian to Support her Work and Travels
“Tatiana has a lot of experience teaching Ukrainian to English speakers, and it shows.”
Fiona Greenland, Professor of Sociology
French Student Spotlight: Miles Gilbert's Fluency Goal
“Lessons with Anne have given me the confidence that I can learn a new language.”
Japanese Student Spotlight: Caroline Laco
“I like that I can ask a question about a topic I'm unclear about and instantly have it explained to me.”
Spanish Student Spotlight: Career Coach Melissa Hannah
“Speak! Language Center has the perfect format for practicing your target language”
Melissa Hannah, Career Coach
Spanish Student Spotlight: Jess Wenger
“Hearing questions from classmates (and hopefully them hearing mine) helps us all learn and grow on our Spanish journey.”
Jess Wenger, Facilities Management
Student Spotlight: ANA
“Our classes are very dynamic. Dana always has something new and especially a lot of patience and didactics. It's an enjoyable environment, and everything flows well.“
Ana Oliveira, Biologist
Student Spotlight: NICK
“Marta was truly one of the best language instructors I’ve worked with. She had a knack for simplifying difficult concepts and illustrating her points with lots of examples culled from a variety of authentic sources (newspapers, music, videos, etc.), and she was also great about correcting my grammar and pronunciation without ever seeming overbearing…“
Student Spotlight: UMAIR
“The lessons really helped me elevate overall English communication skills, it also helped me enhance my enunciation, intonation, listening skills, and understating of common American phrases. The initial assessment by my coach helped me identify weak areas so that I could work on them and be clearly understood by professors and peers…“
Student Spotlight: HISTORY PROF. DAVID SINGERMAN - AND HIS BABY DAUGHTER!
“Being conversant in another language opens your view of the world, and I really missed that feeling. I found it such a joy to be immersed in another linguistic world, and my lessons with Paola were the hour I looked forward to most every week.“
David Singerman, Professor of History
Student Spotlight: CHANDLER'S KOREAN JOURNEY
“Sojung is a fantastic teacher. She is so encouraging and always finds ways to tie my interests back to our lessons which helps me retain the information better.“
Student Spotlight: JEFF'S SPANISH ADVENTURE
“During my travels, I always wished I could speak to people in their own language. I thought that if I learned Spanish, I might be more likely to use it in other countries and in our own, and therefore to remember it“
Jeff Leopold, Darden School of Business